


The Last Knightress

by shandorica



Category: Star Wars - All Media Types, Star Wars Episode VII: The Force Awakens (2015)
Genre: F/M, Post-TLJ, Spoilers
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2018-01-02
Updated: 2018-01-02
Packaged: 2019-02-26 16:10:08
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 2
Words: 5,140
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/13239321
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/shandorica/pseuds/shandorica
Summary: With the death of Snoke, Kylo Ren rises as the Last Knight of Ren and the new Supreme Leader of the First Order. The Resistance rebuilds and Rey searches for direction without the guidance of her Jedi master, surrounded by friends new and old.And in a distant corner of the galaxy, as the dark and light fight for control, a balance is awakened.





	1. I've got a good feeling about this

**Author's Note:**

> This has just been playing around in my head since I saw TLJ... let's see where it goes.

A blinding ray of blue cut a clean slice through the dark, dissolving it, destroying it, unleashing her…

 

_ “..he ignites it and kills his true enemy..” _

 

With a gasp, a woman awakens, a smile on her lips.

 

“The supreme leader has fallen,” she whispers into a silent night. She laughs until they turn to sobs.

 

_____

  
  


_ One Month After the Battle of Crait _

_ Outer Rim Territories, Belsmuth Sector _

  
  


“I’ve got a bad--”

 

Rey was promptly cut off by Chewie’s growl in warning. She shot him a look from the captain’s seat.

 

“I know, I know,” she said. “Bad luck and all, but I do…”

 

Chewie grumbled something along the lines of  _ why don’t you go and meditate on it, _ with a bit more colorful language. Rey rolled her eyes.

 

“Maybe I will,” she said, hopping from her seat and leaving the cockpit. 

 

She gave R2 a pat on her way out and threw a quick “Don’t crash while I’m gone,” over her shoulder, grinning at the disgruntled roar she got in response.

 

“I hope cabin-fever hasn’t got you two butting heads,” a level, elegant voice said. Rey narrowly avoided a collision with General Organa. For someone training, if she could even call it that now, to be a Jedi, Rey’s penchant for clumsiness never ceased to surprise those around her.

 

“General,” Rey said, freezing once she regained her footing. “Not at all.” 

 

General Organa smiled at her propriety.

 

“How many times must I tell you to call me Leia?” she asked.

 

“A few times more to be sure,” Rey answered with a small smile. Leia continued to look at her expectantly, but Rey hesitated.

 

The moment they had dropped out of hyperspace, their destination of Akiva in view, Rey had felt a tightening in her chest. Not painful, but a pressure… familiar but she couldn’t remember how. Looking down now at the thoughtful dark eyes of the last standing leader of the rebellion, Rey decided against sharing her worry. 

 

While stronger than the whole lot of them combined, the General has lost a husband and brother in the short time Rey had come to know her. She could do without one more burden on her shoulders.

 

“I was just hoping to sneak away for a bit,” Rey said. “To meditate.”

 

Leia smiled. “Of course.” She stepped to the side for Rey to slip down the tight corridor.

 

Though they had collected a handful of ships and crew since departing Crait, there were still a good number of resistance fighters that called the Millennium Falcon their temporary home. Which made finding a quiet place for meditation difficult, unless you knew where to look. 

 

They had been lucky so far to not need their escape pod, but it was outfitted for use at a moment’s notice regardless. It was here that Rey was able to find some solace on the bustling ship.

 

She sat cross-legged at its center, rested her hands on her knees, and inhaled.

 

When they left Crait, and she closed the ramp to the Millennium Falcon, Rey had closed the bond between herself and Kylo Ren as well. She had feared that he would return to her still, in the moments when her mind would grow quiet, watching her friends, new and old, laugh around the holo-table. When she closed her eyes at night to sleep. And when she would wake in a cold sweat with the terror of Snoke’s intrusion into her mind still lingering behind her eyes.

 

On those nights she was grateful that she was silent in her sleep, despite the nightmares. She could still hide them from her shipmates. Hide them from the pain and fear that enveloped her, and above all else  _ embarrassed  _ her. They couldn’t be allowed to see this weakness in her. She had to be  _ strong. _

 

Despite these moments, Kylo Ren never reached out to her. Or if he had, he never made it to her. Sometimes, she would feel  _ something _ . A dark stab in the back of her mind, a quick sharp shearing knife of heat. But just as quickly, it would dissipate. As though a shield pushed forth to cushion the blow. But Rey knew, somehow, that it wasn’t her own strength through the force. It was distinctly other. Not a threat, but something else. 

 

As she sat in the escape pod, she reached out. Despite Luke’s teachings, Rey still felt that a stretching of her fingers, and the flattening of her palms as they faced skyward helped to center her. A comfort now in his absence.

 

Through the Force she felt her own light, an easy flickering flame to distinguish from others with her practices. As she pushed out, she could see and feel the rest of her shipmates. Rose below a hidden compartment tinkering, a rosy pink glow that almost glittered. Finn beside her laughing, a warm gold that smoldered. Leia was always a quiet muted yellow, never overbearing, except in her brief pangs of sadness.

 

And there was Poe at the holo-table with two of his squadron, recently reunited as they made a stop on Garos IV to pick up a few rebels in hiding. Jessika Pava and Snap Wexley had been greeted with such warmth and enthusiasm upon boarding, that Rey was nearly blinded by his happiness. Poe was a bright white flame, relentlessly warm to the touch of her mind, and it only grew in a moment of joy. 

 

Rey flushed slightly and shook her head with a small smile. She didn’t have time for errant thoughts of the Commander. Despite his limitless supply of kindness towards her.

 

_ Focus. _

 

She pushed out further, into the open void of space, searching for that feeling settled firmly in her chest. It wasn’t like the others. The glow of Rose or the warmth of Poe. It was muted. Gray. Cool.

 

_ Safe. _

 

But Rey couldn’t find it. She frowned and pushed further out still. Then a sharp heat hit her. She rushed to throw up the wall, but half-heartedly as she waited for the shield… that never came.

 

“Rey.” 

 

Her eyes snapped open. And she was no longer in the escape pod, but a dark room with  _ him _ sitting directly in front of her. 

 

“No!” she shouted, scrambling backwards. “Get out of my head.”

 

Kylo Ren remained cross-legged on the floor in front of her. He looked at her with a calm that shook her. 

 

“I was wondering when you would open yourself to me again,” he continued.

 

“I haven’t,” Rey snapped. She closed her eyes, her hands in fists at her sides, trying to push him out. But he pushed back, with a sudden unrestrained fury. 

 

“You think the resistance can hide from me forever? You think  _ you _ can?” Kylo yelled - his voice suffocating her. “I AM the supreme leader, and you...” He stood over her, so swiftly she thought she may be imagining it all. Another nightmare. That’s all this had to be.

 

But the pain was unrelenting, and Rey sunk to her knees. She was reminded of Snoke, prying hands trying to dig into her thoughts, but she wouldn’t let him. She wouldn’t. He could not find them. If she was the last wall, the last stand, she would not fall to him.

 

“You are nothing…” he whispered, filled with utter hate.

 

“NO!” she screamed, and the wall went up, the escape pod back in view. Rey willed it to stay, and it did but it flickered like a faltering holo. Rey heard footsteps coming down the corridors of the Falcon, converging on her. She silently willed them to wait. Give her a moment. She couldn’t focus as hands grabbed hers lightly. She had to protect them she had to but it was slipping.

 

_ I’ve got you. _

 

Rey gasped with relief as the escape pod disappeared again, but in its place was not Kylo Ren and the dark room. She realized she must have slipped fully to the ground because she was suddenly on-planet, staring up at a starry sky framed by luscious thick-leaved trees. Rey sat up, and found herself looking at a woman, a bit older than her, with startling gray blue eyes and light hair. She look distinctly disgruntled, hair mussed from what could have been sleep and a light sheen of sweat on her skin. She sat in a meditative position, albeit more lackadaisical.

 

“If you keep pulling things like that he’ll find you,” the woman said simply, her voice tired and low.

 

“Who are you?” Rey asked, suddenly aware of just how vulnerable she was. But when she focused she could feel her hands in someone else’s grip. She squeezed them.  _ I’m still here, I’m allright. _

 

“The person helping to keep you safe from him,” the woman said cooly. “Snoke may be dead, but that doesn’t mean you’re safe. Not with Vader Junior running around like a Tauntaun in a parts trading post.” 

 

Rey chuckled at her tone then frowned. “What’s a Tauntaun?” 

 

The woman rolled her eyes skyward. “Pray to the Force you never have to find out. Hoth is the worst.” 

 

“Cold I hear,” Rey said lightly.

 

“The coldest,” the woman said. She cracked her knuckles and leaned back to rest her hands behind her, letting out a resounding sigh.

 

“You’re a force-user then?” Rey was suspicious of this woman, but hopeful. If she had been helping her, perhaps she was another Jedi. Another step from extinction for her faltering species.

 

The woman smirked with a knowing look that was almost annoying. “We’ll have plenty of time to discuss that soon enough. Get your hands cleaned up. You’ve got someone waiting for you.” And with a wink and a sudden shove of the Force, the woman was gone, and in her place was a fearful looking Poe.

 

“Rey can you hear me?” he asked, sounding as if it wasn’t the first time he had repeated this sentiment. Rey felt oddly floaty, and saw that Poe had her hands in his grasp lightly. She smiled a little.

 

“Yes, sorry,” she whispered, staring into his worried eyes. She wondered why she hadn’t really  _ looked  _ before. “Hi.”

 

Poe flushed a brilliant pink at her unwavering gaze and shot a quick glance over Rey’s shoulder. A few sets of footsteps retreated, but Finn’s familiar presence came forward and around to her front. Rey could feel Leia lingering by the entryway.

 

“Hi, yourself,” Poe said quietly. “Are you allright?”

 

“Was it Kylo?” Finn said more urgently. Poe shot him a look that was unusually sharp. Finn’s reaction was more a smile than a rebuff which only proceeded to confuse Rey. She had been upfront with their entire crew after taking off from Crait about her force bond with Kylo Ren. She didn’t want to put them at risk and told them as much. 

 

“I’m okay,” Rey said firmly, drawing their gazes back to her. “He got in, he was telling me I couldn’t hide forever, that I was…” Her face fell as her voice left her.

 

_ Nothing. You are nothing. _

 

Rey was ashamed that her eyes welled with tears but she shook her head.  _ Be strong, be strong. _

 

“You were yelling,” Poe said. A gentle nudge, not a push. “Then you were speaking to someone about… Tauntauns?” 

 

Rey let out a breathy laugh, silently thanking him for the reprieve. “I don’t know who she was, but she wasn’t… bad I don’t think. She helped me close the bond. I don’t know where she was but there were so many trees and Force it was hot, like suffocating damp heat.” She must have made a disgusted face because Poe seemed to be trying very hard to keep from laughing. 

 

“Sounds a whole lot like Akiva,” Poe said, referring the planet they were currently orbiting.

 

“Let’s get some bacta on those hands of yours,” Leia said, and Rey jumped, having forgotten the General was there for a moment. She looked down at her palms, suddenly painfully aware that Poe was still holding on to them, and saw that she had dug her nails in so tight during her Kylo encounter she had drawn blood.

 

Despite the blood and the reddening of her cheeks and the overall impending danger they faced exposing themselves on the planet below them, Rey smiled.

 

“I’ve got a good feeling about this.”


	2. Awesome

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Akiva is just as hot as expected, Jessika Pava is a pranskter, and never piss off a baby Jedi.

After getting the all-clear from one of the supply ships that went ahead to Akiva to do some scouting, the Millennium Falcon and the rest of the resistance ships made their landing south of the capital city of Myrra, near Farsigo bay. A good number of ships came through the area for trading and resupply, so hiding in plain sight was an easy choice.

 

“Happy to be home, Snap?” Poe asked. 

 

“As happy as I can be drenched in my own sweat,” Snap breathed out. “I always think it’ll cool down one of these days but no…”

 

Poe and Snap walked a perimeter around their temporary base, noting weaknesses, suspicious ships, blind spots, and escape routes along the way. The dense jungles of Akiva reminded Poe of his home on Yavin 4, but Force was Rey right about the heat. He couldn’t help but be grateful for the opportunity to dress down from the Resistance uniform. Despite Akiva’s New Republic leanings, the Republic was gone now. No where was truly safe enough to go galavanting about in resistance wear anyway.

 

When they landed, their scouting party arrived with bundles of lightweight clothing in beige and brown and green, which they handed out to their crews with permissions to venture but not too far, and not in too large of groups.

 

Jess had quite eagerly dragged a stunned looking Rey off to the bay for a swim. When Poe had raised his hands in the air with a laugh at Rey’s silent plead for help she sent him a glare that would’ve sent anyone else running. But he saw the scrunch of her nose that only meant one thing - revenge was imminent. 

 

The two pilots returned to the Falcon and handed over their report to General Leia. After planning out a schedule for keeping their perimeter locked down, Leia dismissed them.

 

“Go have some fun, for once,” she said firmly, a hint of a smile in her eyes.

 

“I think she means while we still can,” Poe muttered gravely as Snap led him down the ramp and off to a trail through the thick trees.

 

Snap put a hand on Poe’s shoulder as they walked. “Listen Poe, I know a lot has happened--”

 

“We don’t need to do this right now,” Poe said, his lips tightened.

 

“We do, we really do,” Snap pulled him to a stop. “I’ve been at this a little while longer than you Dameron, and there is always,  _ always _ going to be pain and loss. It comes with this fight. But every last one of us fights each day all the same, so that we can have these moments. That is the only way we can keep our hope.”

 

Poe nodded. “A lot of people still died because of me Snap,” he whispered. “People who trusted me with their lives.”

 

“And a lot of people are still alive in spite of that,” Snap said with a shake to his shoulder. “Because of you. I know I for one would be dead a dozen times over if your sorry ass hadn’t swept in to save me. And Jess’ll say the same thing.”

 

“What will I say now?” Jess sprang into view, practically tripping into them while laughing wildly. Her hair was drenched. As were her brand new Akiva clothes. She looked down at herself and only proceeding to roar with laughter again. 

 

“I like your girl, not bad on the eyes either,” she said to Poe with an overt wiggle of her eyebrows. Poe felt the tips of his ears go red.

 

“She’s not--”

 

“PAVA!”

 

The trio turned to the shout, but were met with silence. Rey didn’t appear.

 

“What did you do Jess?” Poe groaned, running a hand down his face. Then he saw a bundle in her hands, and his whole face heated.

 

“Now before you get mad,” Jess said, holding her handful of clothing out of his reach as he stalked toward her. “I did this as a favor to you.” 

 

Snap seemed to put two-and-two together finally. 

 

“Jess you can’t just leave the girl naked in the jungle,” Snap said firmly, though his mouth twitched as he did.

 

“I would do no such--” the clothes zipped out of her hands, but Jess seemed unfazed by this development. “--thing. See? She used the force.” Jess waved her hands fancifully in front of her. 

 

“To be fair,” Rey’s voice called, “I did push her in.” After a moment she came out from behind a particularly large tree with a grin on her face. She’d put on a pair of simple green cropped trousers and a fitted brown vest that showed off all four of her long tan limbs. Poe made an effort to look only at her face.

 

“I had a feeling we should have kept you two on separate ships,” he said with a smirk. His face was most definitely pink still.

 

“Go get cleaned up and meet us down the road at Pok’s,” Snap said, pulling Poe away with a knowing smile.

 

“Last one to the ship is a nerf-herder!” Jess yelled, sprinting off in the opposite direction. Rey followed after her at a much more leisurely pace, arms high in the air.

 

“I am the nerf-herder,” she said, her voice like honey with warmth and happiness and this level of content Poe didn’t think was possible in the Jedi girl.

 

Once enough distance was between them and Poe still hadn’t moved, watching Rey trace her way down the path with dancer-like grace, Snap asked him what was wrong.

 

“She missed out on so much,” Poe said. “Growing up alone on Jakku. She’s just so… young.”

 

Snap gave him a sideways look as Rey glanced over her shoulder further down the path and smiled at them before finally taking off in a run. “Years don’t necessarily quantify life experience.” 

 

Poe barked out a laugh. “Says the old man.”

 

\------------

 

Pok’s Cantina appeared to have expanded since the last time Snap was there. Poe had imagined a more hut-esque vibe from the stories he told. Now it was a huge central outpost, with trade stands circling the outside and patrons flooding in and out. So much activity despite the early morning hours.

 

The floor was a heavy steel, worn down from its former shine and coated with a fine layer or jungle dirt. The walls were decorated with relics from across the galaxy, Mandalorian helmets, archaic weaponry. One wall looked to just be the entire side off an old Republic bomber. In the cantina’s center was a massive bar that was definitely made of old salvaged ship parts.

 

Poe had a feeling Rey would be a mix of awestruck and horrified at the waste of perfectly good parts. 

 

“This is awesome,” Poe said, nudging Snap with his elbow. They were sitting along the bar nursing a couple of Ice Blasters. Very popular drink in the hot climate, it made your breath come out in icy puffs with each sip and cooled you down to your very bones. Snap had stopped Poe from ordering “Pok’s Surprise” - which apparently had retained the same recipe for decades and guaranteed the terrible combination of the best drunk and absolute worst hangover known in all of the Outer Rim, all in a single cup the size of your fist. Snap couldn’t even name all of the liquors involved, losing track somewhere around 17.

 

The tables around them were filled with a variety of folk. A few Koorivars were having a huddled quiet discussion in the corner. Three long tables held the crew of what had to be a smuggling ship, inhaling a massive breakfast that had been brought out by a four-armed Besalisk named Tim who must have been the chef of the cantina. Nien Nunb was leaning against one of the tables, chatting with an old arms dealer from a previous life. He’d given his fellow pilots an idle wave when they’d come in. 

 

Their bartender was another Besalisk named Psy - Tim’s wife it seemed based on the way she ordered him around but still gave him smiles, all while making four separate drinks without confusing them. She dropped three of the drinks at a pair of Ithorians and a human, who switched between Ithorese and Galactic Basic discussing what could have been either flight aerodynamics or gardening (Poe’s Ithorese was limited to “Hello,” “Goodbye,” and “Is this poisonous?”). 

 

In the back corner a card game between two ancient looking men was interrupted by one of the players flipping the table and shouting at the other in a language Poe was certain he’d never heard before. Psy the bartender threw down her hand towel, ready to head over and break up the fight, with the disinterest of someone who saw this a dozen times, but just when a punch would have, should have really, been thrown, the two froze almost imperceptibly, and dropped their fists. Poe looked around - did no one else see it? Even Snap gave him a look when the two righted the table and simply left, leaving their pot of winnings - albeit small - just sitting on the table.

 

“That’s new,” Snap said. “Those two have been coming here since even I was a kid. It’s not a day at Pok’s if one doesn’t leave with a bloodied fist.” 

 

The human that had been in discussions with the two Ithorians at the other end of the bar appeared at the table, gathered the pot, circled around the back of the bar, and dropped it in the register, snatching a bottle of Corellian ale on her way back to her seat.

 

“Force-User?” Poe whispered. Before Snap could respond, the girl’s gray eyes were on Poe, and a voice suddenly in his head.

 

_ Who’s asking? _

 

Poe pushed back from the bar, knocking over the stool behind him. His hands were on his head in a whoosh of panic.

 

“Get out of my HEAD!” he yelled. The voice wasn’t the same, and he knew, he  _ knew  _ it wasn’t  _ him.  _ But all he could see was a silver black mask and a gloved hand stretched out… pulling from him. There wasn’t the pain like before, but the intrusion on its own was enough to send him into a spiral.  _ Make it stop make it stop. Please. _

 

“Poe, who is it?” Snap asked. He jumped up and darted his head around, blaster out, pointing aimlessly and causing a handful of shrieks and blasters pulled in retaliation.

 

The intrusion abruptly lessened. The voice coming in more muted, like it was underwater, a mile away.  _ Oh that’s interesting. Relax Jedi I’m not going to hurt the flyboy. _

 

Everything around Poe froze. Every patron stood stock still, including Snap, posed holding his blaster out like an action figure. Pointing it directly at the girl at the bar. He’d figured it out a moment too late.

 

“I apologize,” she said, aloud this time. Poe let his hands drop and was ashamed at the shake in them. The girl’s face was kind, but hard, like she didn’t give way like this often. “I forget myself sometimes.”

 

“What was that?” Poe asked. The woman dropped from her stool and circled the bar, stopping well out of arm’s reach from him. Smart on her part, as he was still shaking and wasn’t certain he’d be able to stop himself from lashing out at her.

 

“I heard you,” she said. “I realize that for someone that’s gone through… well what you’ve been through, speaking to you through the Force was unwise. Better to come over and introduce myself, but to be honest I don’t interact with humans much anymore.” She winced and rubbed at her temple. “Well that is just uncalled for…” she mumbled.

 

“And what the kriff would you know about what I’ve been through?” Poe ground out. He glanced at Snap. “And unfreeze my friend will you?”

 

Snap stumbled forward with a sharp inhale and spun around. “What in the kriffing hell…” He moved to point his blaster at the girl that, to him, had just appeared directly beside him, but just as quickly she was slid across the room and into a table. 

 

Slid was kind, it was more a very not-gentle throw. The girl groaned from the ground. 

 

“Okay I may have deserved that,” she said, though to who exactly it was unclear.

 

Snap reholstered his blaster and threw his hands in the air. “Force, I give up!” Then he dropped back on his stool and downed his drink. Poe shook his head and followed suit.

 

“Angry Jedi incoming!” The two turned to the sound of Jess’ yell just as Rey burst through the door and made a beeline for the Force-User. Jess followed quickly behind, out of breath and looking utterly bemused at the statuesque nature of the cantina’s patrons. “They’re like this almost all the way out to the ship. I thought maybe there was a toxin in the air.” She sidled over to the bar, leaned over and grabbed a bottle of something glowing and blue. “Or a really good drink I was missing out on.” 

 

“I said I was sorry!” The three pilots glanced over at the overturned table where the force-user girl was pushing herself to her feet. “You really need to learn to control your anger baby Jedi.” She stood and dusted herself off. “There’s a fine line between protectiveness and rage. Get on the right side of it.”

 

Rey stood a few feet away from her, visibly fuming.

 

“And you need to learn what boundaries are,” Rey grit out. 

 

“Oh I know all about boundaries mini-Skywalker,” the other girl snapped. They must have continued their squabble in their minds because they became silent, but continued to glare at each other.

 

“What happened out there Jess?” Snap asked quietly. Jess drank straight from the bottle and waved a hand in the air. 

 

“This tastes like sunshine,” she said gleefully. Her face turned serious when her gaze met Poe’s. “One minute we were walking and talking and the next she dropped like she’d gotten a blast to the head.” Jess pointed the mouth of her bottle at Rey. “Popped back up real quick though and practically sprinted here. Didn’t say a word til we got here.”

 

“How did you know?” Poe asked, looking to Rey. She met his gaze with a frown.

 

\------------

 

The panic was so sudden and all-encompassing that Rey dropped to the ground. 

 

_ Make it stop make it stop. Please. _

 

But it wasn’t her mind that was being intruded on. She jumped up from the ground and took off, ignoring Jess’ shouts from behind her as she ran and threw up the wall.

 

_ Back off. _

 

_ Oh that’s interesting. Relax Jedi I’m not going to hurt the flyboy. _

 

_ You stay away from him. You stay out of his head. _

 

Rey nearly ran into someone that… froze right in front of her.

 

_ “I apologize. I forget myself sometimes.” _

 

_ How do you just  _ forget _ to not invade someone’s mind you kriffing-- _

 

_ I wasn’t digging. _

 

_ “What was that?” _

 

_ “I heard you. I realize that for someone that’s gone through--” _

 

_ So you were digging through his head. _

 

_ “-- well what you’ve been through, speaking to you through the Force was unwise. Better to come over and introduce myself, but to be honest I don’t interact with humans much anymore.”  _

 

Rey pushed harder, weaving through statues of people as she reinforced the wall between the girl and Poe. She imagined a wall with jagged edges facing outward. A shield.

 

_ “Well that is just uncalled for…” _

 

_ “And what the kriff would you know about what I’ve been through? And unfreeze my friend will you?” _

 

_ I’m just trying to be friendly. _

 

_ What is confusing about the words: Back. Off. _

 

_ Oh so many things, shall I make a list? _

 

Rey was close enough now to see her, the cool gray of her, and with almost no effort threw her across the room as she reached the cantina doors.

 

_ “Okay I may have deserved that.” _

 

Rey threw open the cantina doors and with a quick glance that confirmed Poe was allright, went straight for the girl.

 

_ I’m sick of this, who are you? What do you want with me? _

 

_ You have quite the anger problem.  _ The girl rubbed a hand along her ribs.  _ You’re lucky I didn’t let you break anything. _

 

_ Let me break anything? Would you like to test that? _

 

_ Allright allright -  _ “I said I was sorry!” She pushed herself up and Rey was surprised to see the girl was nearly a head shorter than her. She was dressed in shades of green, with subtle armor sewn throughout her fitted clothing. “You really need to learn to control your anger baby Jedi. There’s a fine line between protectiveness and rage. Get on the right side of it.”

 

“And you need to learn what boundaries are,” Rey grit out. 

 

“Oh I know all about boundaries mini-Skywalker.”

 

She paused and gave Rey a look.  _ It’s okay that you care. I understand it, I do. And I am sorry. I wouldn’t have done that if I had known what Kylo had done to him. _

 

_ How did you find out at all? _

 

_ The moment I spoke to him, he projected it so loud I’m surprised the whole planet couldn’t hear it. Has he talked to anyone about it? _

 

Rey frowned with a sigh.  _ Honestly I don’t know. Is that why I heard him? _

 

The girl smiled.  _ See that’s what’s so interesting, it was like he was a direct line to you. Force bond of some kind-- _

 

Rey’s eyes widened.  _ No, no it can’t be that-- _

 

_ Not like with Kylo.  _ The girl put her hand on Rey’s shoulder.  _ A Force Bond like that is made with the Dark Side, this is different. Like it formed out of necessity. _

 

“How did you know?” Poe’s voice drew Rey’s attention and she met his gaze. 

 

There was no simple answer to it. And if it was something like a Force Bond, like she feared, she was terrified of how he could react. His face was unreadable and it unnerved her.

 

_ It will be fine. _ The girl’s voice was warm in her head, despite the steel on her face.

 

“I don’t know.”

 

It was easier.

 

“Care to introduce us?” Jess was waving around her now half-empty bottle with glazed eyes and a smirk that rivaled Poe’s on his best day. Always there to brighten the day.

 

“Dez Kryze,” the girl said. “Though the true name my father should have taken before me... was Kenobi.”

 

Jess’ jaw dropped. “Awesome.”


End file.
